Program Educational Goals:
The Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) program in Cognitive Psychology is designed to train theoretically focused scientists who seek to understand the human mind and brain. The thematic focus of the program is on basic mechanisms such as perception, attention, memory, cognitive control, and higher-level cognition. Students are trained to answer scientific questions in this domain by studying human behavior and/or physiology using neuroimaging, electrophysiology, transcranial magnetic stimulation in typical populations, as well as people with brain damage and developmental disorders.
By the end of the program, graduates will be able to:
1. Demonstrate broad expertise in domains of cognition and their implications for interdisciplinary research through fluent scientific discussion, writing, and presentation.
2. Think critically. Synthesize knowledge into novel scientific insights. Constructively critique scientific theories, hypotheses, experimental procedures and results. Generate theoretically grounded hypotheses and experimental designs.
3. Effectively implement experimental designs. Collect, manage, analyze, and report data. Report outcomes in informal and formal settings that may include conferences, journal articles, invited talks and publications.
4. Learn and apply statistical and quantitative methods in the production and critical review of research. This includes descriptive procedures for summarizing data, statistical procedures for performing inferential tests, and development of appropriate data visualization.
5. Master oral and written communication for a variety of audiences, including experts (e.g. at conferences and in journal publications), undergraduate and graduate students, and the general public.
